Are these the best-ever, yet most unsung funny car kits of all time?

[R. Thorne]

No one else has any suggestions?  Mr. Boyd?

[Lobo2me]

Great builds, photos and I had fun watching the interest and following the suggestions. Thanks Tim. Can't believe some model maker hasn't produced a modern dragster kit! With today's high degree of comonality amongst the funny car and top fuel ranks you'd think it would be fertile ground for kit and decal suppliers. Which leads me to why I was so blown away when I stumbled on IMC kits of the kit-car I had built in high school. I couldn't imagine why anyone would invest in producing such a low volume, rare, limited, fake car....but I am sure glad they did! Go ahead Revell, take a chance!!!!

[tim boyd]

22 hours ago, R. Thorne said:

No one else has any suggestions?  Mr. Boyd?

Ron...you are not going to want to hear this but based on that cutaway you posted, there are really no existing model car kit funny car chassis that I can think of that would provide an accurate replica of this chassis without a very high degree of modification required.    

The illustration above of scratchbuilding supplies is probably your best bet if you want a really accurate replica. 

While I wouldn't suggest it would be easy, it also is not that hard and could be a really fun project.  In the next few weeks I'll post here images of a funny car I built in 1970-72 that had an entirely scratchbuilt tubular chassis/frame.   So, it can be done...and today's modeling supplies and resources are far better than I had to work with some 50 years ago...

Good luck to you if you attempt it, and please share photos of your progress....TIM 

Edited April 6, 2022 by tim boyd

[R. Thorne]

Thank you, Jesse and Tim.  I guess this  neophyte funny car builder just couldn’t accept that no donor kits would be available for this famous, trend setting car.  Once again, this forum is invaluable.  Again, my humble thanks, gentlemen.

[R. Thorne]

Well, I ordered the resin long nose Dart body.  Perhaps I should further explain my question about a “donor body”.  I mainly wanted a kit that would have some of the essentials (Halibrand wheels, tires, engine and trans though this car is unblownmis. Parts, etc.).  I was not looking for a bolt in frame.  I am going to order one of the reasonably priced Polar Lights kits to satisfy that requirement, as I have no funny car kits or parts to use.  Looks as if any kit would do for me, although any suggestions (and criticisms) are always welcomed.  Thanks again.

[tim boyd]

On 4/7/2022 at 5:43 PM, R. Thorne said:

Well, I ordered the resin long nose Dart body.  Perhaps I should further explain my question about a “donor body”.  I mainly wanted a kit that would have some of the essentials (Halibrand wheels, tires, engine and trans though this car is unblownmis. Parts, etc.).  I was not looking for a bolt in frame.  I am going to order one of the reasonably priced Polar Lights kits to satisfy that requirement, as I have no funny car kits or parts to use.  Looks as if any kit would do for me, although any suggestions (and criticisms) are always welcomed.  Thanks again.

Ron...sounds like a very good plan.  Please share photos as your project progresses if/when you deem appropriate.  Best....TIM 

[tim boyd]

On 4/5/2022 at 9:13 PM, Lobo2me said:

Great builds, photos and I had fun watching the interest and following the suggestions. Thanks Tim. Can't believe some model maker hasn't produced a modern dragster kit! With today's high degree of comonality amongst the funny car and top fuel ranks you'd think it would be fertile ground for kit and decal suppliers. Which leads me to why I was so blown away when I stumbled on IMC kits of the kit-car I had built in high school. I couldn't imagine why anyone would invest in producing such a low volume, rare, limited, fake car....but I am sure glad they did! Go ahead Revell, take a chance!!!!

Steve....that is a very cool model. I don't believe I've ever seen one built until now.  I am trying to remember, but wasn't that kit a second body spinoff of the one of the original IMC tools....maybe the VW Bug kit? 

And as indicated above and also in my book on Drag Racing Model Kits, I too believe that there is fertile ground in Revell updating their 1990's mid engine rail dragster tool at a minimum, and possibly the funny cars, too.  I don't follow 1/1 scale drag racing these days as closely as I used to, so I'm not sure just how much revision would be necessary.  But that is what I understand Revell may have been trying to assess before all the Hobbico nastiness and its fallout.   

The issue the model companies face with drag racing oriented kits, I am told by several of them, is that they sell very well at first but then very quickly drop-off to essentially no sales at all.  So the general business case is tough to put together and defend vs. other uses for the same money.  That, plus the clear data that shows 1960's/early 1970's drag racing topics do better than more recent subjects.  Of course, one could argue that no kit has really covered the last 20 years and that such comparisons (with 1990's topics) are no longer valid.... 

And did I mention how cool your model looks?

Best...TB  

[vamach1]

One of John Force’s first funny cars which could be made modified starting with the MPC Hot Rod mold but the sidewinder engine might be troublesome.  It’s amazing John is still racing over 50 years later.

Edited May 23, 2022 by vamach1

[MADmodelDOCTOR]

On 4/4/2022 at 11:42 AM, Daddyfink said:

This should fit the bill

LOL!!!

[MADmodelDOCTOR]

Well Tim, I never got these. Here we go. The Dana 60 rearend looks good. later

[magicmustang]

On 4/3/2022 at 6:14 AM, tim boyd said:

Hi John.  Yes, the yellow chassis was from the Hawaiian kit.  As Mike says above, there were several refinements of the basic Logghe chassis design.  This kit represented the third generation design, one that MPC eventually also offered in several of their funny car kits such as the 1970 Mercury Cyclone "Cyclops" kit.  The Dyno Don car used the first gen Logghe design, and that was most accurately portrayed in MPC's two first -ever funny car kits - their 1967 "Color Me Gone" Charger and in an incorrect to the 1/1 usage in their 1967 Dick Jesse "Mr. Unswitchable" GTO funny car kit.  The second generation Logghe chassis was in most of MPC's 1968/69 kits, most of the Jo-Han funny car and annual kits starting in 1968, and AMT's funny car kits starting in 1969.  They were also duplicated in the many Polar Lights (later Round 2) funny car kits. 

The Revell Hawaiian kit is the best example of the third gen Logghe chassis, while in my view the Jo-Han kits are still the best of the second gen Logghe chassis.  And those two 1967 MPC kits are the only ones of the first gen chassis.  However,  any of the second gen Logghe chassis could be easily converted back to the Dyno Don configuration. 

If anyone cares, there is a much more detailed conversation on all of this in my CarTech Publishing book "Collecting Drag Racing Model Car Kits", available from all the usual book sources. 

Best...TIM   

UPDATE: the name/driver of the MPC 1967 GTO funny car has been corrected....

Here's my grouping of several chassis buildups from the late 60's funny cars. From top left- early Johan (Logghe stage I?), current Polar Lights (Logghe stage II), current Revell (Hawaiian Logghe stage III),next row-Logghe stage III MPC, MPC Logghe stage III (Charlie Allen), and bottom -late (1971?) Johan. Last pic, lower- MPC Logghe stage I chassis with a kit bashed 1966 Dyno Don Comet body, upper- MPC 1967 Color Me Gone Charger with the Logghe stage I chassis. Hope this helps.   

Edited May 27, 2022 by magicmustang

[MADmodelDOCTOR]

Lots of info in a pic there.

[tim boyd]

5 hours ago, magicmustang said:

Here's my grouping of several chassis buildups from the late 60's funny cars. From top left- early Johan (Logghe stage I?), current Polar Lights (Logghe stage II), current Revell (Hawaiian Logghe stage III),next row-Logghe stage III MPC, MPC Logghe stage III (Charlie Allen), and bottom -late (1971?) Johan. Last pic, lower- MPC Logghe stage I 1966 Dyno Don Comet, upper- MPC 1967 Color Me Gone Charger Logghe stage I. Hope this helps.   

 

Thanks Gerald, cool images for sure. 

Just so we are all clear, I am presuming that the lower chassis in the bottom picture is a kitbash of the Dyno Don '66 Comet, as there was never an MPC kit of this specific car.  Is that your understanding as well?

Again, thx for posting this info...TB 

[magicmustang]

1 hour ago, tim boyd said:

Thanks Gerald, cool images for sure. 

Just so we are all clear, I am presuming that the lower chassis in the bottom picture is a kitbash of the Dyno Don '66 Comet, as there was never an MPC kit of this specific car.  Is that your understanding as well?

Again, thx for posting this info...TB 

Yep, the body is a stock AMT '66 Comet Cyclone, engine from the spare parts box, decals off Ebay and the roll bar was scratch built but the floorboard, chassis and suspension are a MPC stage I Logghe set from a recent AMT/Model King '69 GTO funny car.

Edited May 27, 2022 by magicmustang

[tim boyd]

20 hours ago, magicmustang said:

Yep, the body is a stock AMT '66 Comet Cyclone, engine from the spare parts box, decals off Ebay and the roll bar was scratch built but the floorboard, chassis and suspension are a MPC stage I Logghe set from a recent AMT/Model King '69 GTO funny car.

Very, very nicely done.  One could argue with some justification that the 1/1 of this was the most significant funny car ever.  Yours is the first fully correct model project of this car I recall seeing. 

Just very, very cool, Gerald.  TIM 

Edited May 27, 2022 by tim boyd